PILL TESTING - Bonger Instituut

pills tested in buses proved to be somewhat below average in strength, that could
have been characteristic of the regional market, since the existing testing offices in
the selected regions where the bus operated also reported lower pill strengths than
regions elsewhere. In comparison with the existing offices, ecstasy users visiting the
bus were less willing to surrender their pills for further analysis if these could not be
identified on the spot. That could be because many of them wanted to take the pill
the same evening. Although some of the non-surrendered (but recorded) pills later
turned out to be known types, the reluctance of users to part with their pills means
that any new market segments potentially reached by the bus may remain hidden to
DIMS after all.
Ecstasy users
Most of the ecstasy users in the bus subsample who came in for testing had never
had their pills tested before at an existing office. This indicates that testing in nightlife
areas indeed succeeded in reaching previously uncontacted ecstasy users. To some
extent the method also attracted different segments of the users’ population in terms
of background characteristics, patterns of ecstasy use, and consumption patterns of
other legal and illicit substances. Ecstasy users that had their pills tested on the bus
were younger and some of them expressed different music preferences. They had
started doing ecstasy relatively early, and their current use of ecstasy, and of stimulants
in general, was higher than that of the group that tested in the existing offices.
They usually bought their own ecstasy, and they were relatively more likely to buy it
from a dealer they knew than from a friend. They were also relatively more likely than
those testing in offices to buy it on a night out, although the majority of respondents
in both subsamples still usually bought it prior to going out. In sum, the bus clients
were younger, more active ecstasy users who probably also took slightly more risks
in purchasing the drug.
Viability
The practical viability of bus testing was likewise heavily dependent on the policy priorities
of addiction care agencies and local authorities in the region. Some regions
already show some reluctance towards the existing testing method, and these would
seem least likely to support on-site testing in nightlife areas. The practical implementation
of bus testing presented no real problems in the regions studied. Although test-
ing in a bus in a nightlife area is more costly than the services now existing, it would
not necessarily cost more than office-plus testing, provided a bus is already available
and no additional bus driver has to be engaged.
Emergencies
In view of its direct contact with the nightlife area, bus testing would enhance the potential
for launching targeted warning campaigns.
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